Palmer House PullPush - Sept 30

5 rounds, in .30 on 1.14
Max reps bar dips
Max reps neutral grip pulls
...adding assistance each round.

4 wide grip pulls for max reps, same timer
... still adding assist.

6.5 hours - 030/0700. 17 minutes total, PE: 6. 48 hours.

Soccer Sprints n' Pulls - Sept 28

Run 100, 10 air squats, run back
10, in .52ish on 2.45
24 mins.

4x max reps neutral grip pulls
1 min RI
6 mins.

8 - 1 hours - 2300/0700. 30 minutes total, PE: 8. 24 hours.

Front Squat n' Stuff on DE day - Sept 27

Buy in
4x10, 45 sec RI
Hamstring curl @ 125
Extensions @ 
6 mins.

Main set
5 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Front Squat x7 @ 135/145/155/165/5x175
Standing Calf x12-10 @ 255
... one more calf @ 300
15 mins.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 21 minutes total, PE: 7. 24 hours.

531 Pull (9b) - Sept 26

This closes out the b week for cycle 9, cleans be damned, my arm hurts. This worked out to be a heavy volume, rather than heavy work, day.

Buy in
4x Chins @ max reps - strict (4's)
1 min RI
5 mins.

Antagonists, HT timer
Bar dips x 11/10/10/8/6
Chins x max reps (still 4's)
12 mins.

Cash out
3x Y-pulls
A couple attempts at neutral grip pulls ... like I said, brachi really freakin' hurts.
6 mins.

8.5 hours - 2130/0600. 24 minutes total, PE: 6. 24 hours.

Dead DE - FU and your Creamy Filling - Sept 25

Buy in 
3 rounds, on the HT timer, 1.15
Hamstring curl 12 @ 125#
Power clean @ 135
... one more curl.
9 mins.

Deads
1x10 RDL @ 135
Mixed grip 225x8/245x8///x6/
14 mins.

Cash out
Calf singles on the A-frame 4x7+7 @ 3
5 mins.

I feel bombproof right now. Quads are sore as all get out from Monday's squats. Right brachi is really killin', especially with today's cleans. Almost quit on those, but hey, I'm a brick, not a twinkie.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 28 minutes total, PE: 8. 24 hours.

531 Bench 9c - Sept 24

Buy in
4x10-8 Bent over Row @135/145///
...underhanded grip.
6 mins.

531
Rx: 5/3/1 @ 235/265/295
Actual: 10x 220/5x235/3x265/3x295
10 mins.
BBB
4 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Ring rows (these really killed the right brachi, where the bent over rows didn't at all)
Bench @ 220 (70%, offset 5# with the crappy bar at DoucheX ... gonna have to move that bar to an incline rack).
10 mins.

8 - 1 hours - 2200/0600. 27 minutes total, PE: 8. 24 hours.

Squat for Fun - Sept 23

No timer today.

Oly Squat 
10xbar/10x135/10x185/10x215/7x225///10x185/10x135

3x10 RDL @ 135
... on the platform.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 25ish minutes total, PE: 8. 30 hours.

Cleans DE - Sept 22

Barefoot in the Backyard.

5 rounds, maybe 6, in .30 on 1.15
KB Swing x11 @ 2pood
Power clean x3-5 @ 133

Cash out, while Kdawg did die rolls
3x max reps wide grip curl

Damage update: lots of right arm Brachi pain - continuous.

9 hours - 2200/0700. 20ish minutes total, PE: 8. 48 hours.

Psalm 123.

A song of ascents.

¹ I lift up my eyes to you,
    to you who sit enthroned in heaven.
² As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
    as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    till he shows us his mercy.

³ Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us,
    for we have endured no end of contempt.
⁴ We have endured no end
    of ridicule from the arrogant,
    of contempt from the proud.

We take air for granted. We're breathing continuously, and only think about air when it smells bad, we're exercising and there doesn't seem to be enough of it, or when we're at altitude. There's a greatness in getting back to the basics, the simple wonder of the simplest things. Mountaineering affords us that as we only pack the essentials, we get back into touch with the elements by exposing ourselves to them, feeling every ache and pain and muscle and blister as we hike, and feeling the limitations of our lungs when the air is lacking at altitude. We don't notice until it's not there.

We take God for granted. Without Him, the world would fly apart - there would *be* no atmosphere, no planet, no universe, no life.
That's so obvious that it doesn't register. But worse, we take Him for granted as if He were the servant, and we are the master. Our prayers reflect this reversal of roles when we constantly ask for things, for God to bless our days and plans and food - when we only pray when all seems wrong or when someone's ill. Are we so self-centered that we think we're showing God a mercy by giving Him some of our marginal time? The Master's mercy is like the air around us, we move in it and only notice when we feel a lack.

Altitude should also offer us a different view of where we were, when we're high enough to look down on where we normally live. Here in Bako, with some of the worst air in the nation, a little altitude shows that while there's less air up there, the air is a whole lot cleaner. Colors are more vibrant. Light is brighter. Looking down on a blanket of brown in the valley is a reminder that the day-to-day here can give us a dingy view of what's normal, and isn't really healthy.

So we could say, "More air! Cleaner air!" but our focus isn't environmental. We say, "More mercy! A clearer view of your mercy, Master!"

PullPush - Sept 20

Buy in 
Chins 3x6
4 mins.

Main set
5 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
DB recline @ 75 (x10-8)
Croc rows @ 90 (x7-5)
16 mins.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 20 minutes total, PE: 8. 24 hours.

531 Dead 9b - Sept 19

Buy in
3x max reps FtB (5's ... blame it on a hernia)
3 mins.

4 rounds x10, 45 sec RI
Extensions @ 135/150/165/180
Hamstring curl @ 125
6 mins

531 Dead
Rx: 3x3 @ 230/260/295
Actual: 10x215/5x225/3x265/4x295
11 mins. A hard time finding a bar.

BBB
4 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Dead x10 @ 215 (65%)
Standing Calf @ 240
10 mins.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 31 minutes total, PE: 7. 24 hours.

531 Press 9b - Sept 18

Buy in
Y-pull 4x12
5 mins.

Press
Rx: 3x3 @ 130/150/170
Actual: 10x125/3x130/150/170
7 mins.

BBB
4 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Press @ 125 (7's)
Chins (4's-5)
10 mins.

9 hours - 2100/0600. 24 minutes total, PE: 6. 24 hours.

531 Squat 9b - Sept 17

No buy in. This really is matter over mind. After a long four days (up til 2, up til 2, Disneyland day, Golf all day) feeling sleepy and catabolic. Get in there and do the hard day. And once again, once one gets going, all is well with the world.

Squat
Rx: 3x3 @ 190/215/240
Actual: 10x135/8x175/3x205/3x215/5x245
12 mins.

BBB
4 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Squat x8-9 @ 175 (65%) - static hang to rest
Standing calf @ 240x10
10 mins.

Cash out
Hamstring curl 3x10 @ 115
45 secs RI 
3 mins.

8.5 hours - 2130/0600. 26 minutes total, PE: 8. 4 days.

HPull/VPull DE - Sept 13

Buy in
Bent over Row
Max reps @ 135#
3 x overhand (11's)
3 x underhand (8's)
7 mins.

Mixed grip pulls
Neutral, Chin, Overhand
6 rounds for max reps (5-3's, really), on 1.15
7 mins.

9 hours - 2100/0600. 15 minutes total, PE: 6. 24 hours.

CL Cleans day 4x4 - Sept 12

Power Cleans x8/9/10/9 @ 135
6 mins.

4 rounds
Seated calf @ 70
Standing calf @ 260
1 min RI
8 mins.

4 rounds, HT timer on 1.15
Front squat @ 145 x7/8/9/10
RDL @ 135/155/// x10
10 mins.

...that last couplet crushed me.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 25 minutes total, PE: 8. 24 hours.

531 9b Bench - Sept 11

Buy in
3x12 Y-pulls
5 mins.

531 Bench
Rx: 3x3 @ 220/250/280+
Actual: 10x205/3x230/3x50/4x280
7 mins.

BBB
4 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Bench @ 205 x10
Ring rows x13-9
10 mins.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 24 minutes total, PE: 6. 24 hours.

Squat Easy DE-z - Sept 10

5 rounds. in .30 on 1.15
Squat x10 @ 135
KB singles @ 40#, final double

8 hours - 2200/0600. 13 minutes total, PE: 6. 24 hours.

Press - Sept 9

Overhead press
10x95/10x115/10x135/5x155/1x175/0x175/4x155/5x135/7x115
No timer, 1 min RI

VPull Cable Singles
70x15/80x10/85x9/90x9
1 min RI

8 hours - 2230/0630. PE: 6. 72 hours.

Cl - Sept 6

Buy in
3x7/4/7 FtB
The first one hurt, but not as bad as the second. There's a hole in my abdominal wall, and I know its precise location.
45 sec RI
3 mins.

3x11 Hamstring curl @ 115#
45 sec RI
3 mins.

Front Squat, on the HT timer
5x7 @ 135#
7 mins.

3 rounds
Seated calf @ 70
Standing calf @ 255
1 min RI
6 mins.

8 hours - 2200/0600. 20 minutes total, PE: 6. 24 hours.

In Praise of Protein ... for Strength Training Males

So She’s Vegan. Good for Her.

If you’re a female, and interested in hearing your friends ooh and aah about how thin and weak you look, vegetarianism is for you. You really will get a healthy glow to your skin, and look plumpyhealthy with subcutaneous fat. Just don’t let anyone touch you or they’ll realize you’re as muscular as a stick of warm butter.

If you’re a strength athlete; especially if you’re a strength athlete and male, vegan is a bad word. 

If you’re a strength athlete, none of the “common knowledge” on nutrition applies to you. Forget what you read in the newspapers and hear on TV – these factoids apply only to a sedentary, flabby populace. If you’re a strength athlete, the nutritional guidelines will only make you sick, or weak, or crash.

In this country the American Dietetics Association recommends a high-carb, low fat, grain-based diet. This is a pro-inflammatory diet, counterproductive for muscle growth, recovery and performance. The food pyramid is a graphic representation of the same failed-and-failing nutritional model.

If you want to be skinny, or skinny fat, count calories and maintain a nutritional deficit. You can do oxidative training, or not, as you force your body to consume what muscle you have.

Are you a strength athlete? Vegetarianism is out. Eating a Balanced Diet is out. Weight Watchers is out. Carb loading is out. Cardio is out.

Male and a strength athlete? One specific Out is out: Avoid Soy.

Tofu isn’t a substitute for meat. Just as all carbs are not created equal, soy proteins do not sub for meat proteins. Repeat after me: Phy-to-Es-tro-gens.

Tofu was first used in monasteries in China about 2,000 years ago, in part to promote sexual abstinence, since the phytoestrogens in soy lower testosterone levels. – Soy Alert!

Testosterone being desirable for the male strength athlete, a key problem with soy is that it contains these phytoestrogens, which mimic the physiological effects of the endogenous hormone, estrogen.  So by consuming soy products, you’re eating is equivalent to feminizing your hormones, as if you’re taking birth control pills. The flush of phytoestrogens wreaks havoc on the surge of testosterone that happens in weight-training males. If your intent is to create girlishness out of your manhood, soy yourself up.

Because of their estrogenic effects, they act more like drugs in the body than foods. If your body needs estrogen, that may be fine. But for men, or pregnant (particularly vegetarian) mothers, there is evidence that even a very small amount of soy may contribute to problems such as low sperm counts or even testicular cancer and birth defects. – The Healthy Skeptic

Soy milk is the product of ground-up soy beans mixed with water. While soy milk has a similar amount of protein( 6.3 grams per cup - plant based proteins) as cow’s milk (7.9 grams per cup), the amino acid profiles are very different. Mainly, soy has about 1/3 the amount of leucine as cow’s milk. Leucine is responsible for an anabolic effect needed to build muscle. Soy is a poor source of protein because the proteins found in soybeans act as potent enzyme inhibitors. These “antinutrients” block the action of trypsin and other enzymes needed for protein digestion.

Strength training men, eat meat. Meat needs meat to build meat. Opt away from the green diet for the red diet. High Protein, no soy. Meat and milk and no soy milk. 

This is the case for anti-vegetarianism: it’s not for everyone. Vegetarianism is for everyone, just as the savannah is wide and grassy and crowded with herds of herbivores. The few, the apex predators, feed on meat. They live on the savannah but don’t graze there.

Ca - Sept 5

Lethargy won out yesterday, and nearly today. Think I'm zapped because they're shaking the almonds right now, and after a weekend of being out in the dust dove hunting.

Buy in
4x 15-10 Y-pulls
45 secs RI
4 mins.

3 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Bar dips (11-7)
Chins (5's)
Overhead Press @ 115 (10-8)
... one more set of dips.
12 mins.

8.5 hours - 2130/0600. 17 minutes total, PE: 6. 48 hours.

Overhead Squatz - Sept 3

Overhead Squat - for pain
45x10/65x10/85x10/115x7/x5/x5
The squatting was light. The wrists, shoulders and midsection were all racking.
13 mins.

3 rounds
Seated calves @ 70
Standing calves @ 255/240/225 
1 min RI
5 mins.

7 - 1 hours - 2200/0600. 18 minutes total, PE: 6. 72 hours.

Dove Hunt Grunt PushPull - Sept 2

Full stomach, still in my hunting gear after shooting dove. But I'd had 3 days off and didn't want to go another.

4 rounds, in .30 on 1.15
Press x10-8 @ 130
Pulls/Chins x max reps (4's) - my inner elbows are strained.
KB swings x10 @ 2 pood

7 + 1 hours - 2200/0500. 15 minutes total, PE: 6. 72 hours.